Bonanza boys topple Palo Verde’s tennis dynasty

Jummel Hidrosollo / Special to the Home News

Brandon Parker of Palo Verde chases down a forehand against Brandon Aguilar of Bonanza during the Sunset regional tournament at Darling Tennis Center on Friday.

By Sean Ammerman (contact)

Saturday, Oct. 11, 2008 | 2 a.m.

Bonanza had been waiting two years to knock Palo Verde of its mantle as the top boys' tennis program in the state.

Every moment of practice was in preparation of defeating the two-time defending state champs, Bonanza coach Erik Davis said.

His players finally achieved their goal by beating Palo Verde 10-9 in the Sunset Regional finals on Friday, ending Palo Verde's 55-match win streak.

"All our team talked about all year long was playing Palo Verde again at the end of the year," Davis said. "This is the biggest rivalry in (Nevada tennis) to me."

The Bonanza (12-0) players crowded Tommy Lettero in celebration as he clinched the title and berth in the state tournament with a 7-5 tiebreak win against Palo Verde's Kamau Jackson. It was a rematch of last year's final, a match won by Palo Verde.

"I never felt so much pressure, but it was the greatest moment in my life," Lettero said.

In the girls finals, Bishop Gorman topped Palo Verde, 13-5.

Gorman will be going for its fourth consecutive state title when it begins play at the state tournament in Carson City on Oct. 23.

“We got good performances from everybody,” Gorman coach Gordon Hammond said. “We weren’t sure what to expect. It was a much better score than what I was thinking.”

The boys' match finished regulation tied 9-9. The tie-breaker round went to Bonanza as it won four of the six tie-breaker matches.

The doubles team of Laurent Gantier and Sean Lettero went 3-0 in regulation for Bonanza and won its tie-breaker set. Brendan Aguilar held his own against Palo Verde’s deep singles lineup by going 2-1 and winning his tiebreaker.

“I think our guys were a little tight going into the last round because they had never been in that situation before,” Palo Verde coach Zach Brandt said. “Bonanza definitely stepped up and did what they had to do in that last round.”

Palo Verde’s last loss came in the 2005 state finals, also to Bonanza. Both teams have combined to win the last seven state titles.

“This was clearly the two best teams in the state at this point,” Davis said. “We still have to prove that, but in my mind Palo Verde has clearly been the most dominant team all year long.”

Gorman’s girls were led by No. 1 singles player Anita Lee, who went 3-0 and gave up only one game.

Sarah Toti, normally a strong singles player for Gorman, moved to doubles with Caroline Engs and went 3-0 on the day.

With so much experience in the state tournament, Toti said her team will be going into Carson City with plenty of confidence.

“I think this team is just as good as last year’s team,” she said. “Everyone played awesome today and we really played as a team.”

In the boys Sunrise Region finals, Coronado beat Foothill 16-2 to advance to the state semifinals. On the girls side in the Sunset Region, Green Valley High beat Silverado in a tiebreaker in the championship match and advances to the state semifinals.

Sean Ammerman can be reached at 990-2661 or sean.ammerman@hbcpub.com.